A FIRE engulfed a Cowley warehouse producing flames which went into the sky by up to 20ft and had 30 fire fighters battling to put it out.

A FIRE engulfed a Cowley warehouse producing flames which went into the sky by up to 20ft and had 30 fire fighters battling to put it out.

The incident happened in a vacant building on Ashley Road, Cowley, near the Trimite paint building at about 5pm last night (Thursday) where six fire engines attended the scene as well as two aerial appliances and the fire was under control by 6.40pm and extinguished several hours later.

A cloud of thick black smoke was visible above the area and many residents were drawn out of their homes and cars to find out what was going on.

James Piper, 43, of Hilton Close, Cowley, a nearby resident, said: "My daughter was the first to tell me there was a fire and I came out of the house and I could see the flames at least 15 to 20 ft above the warehouse. And then after about half and hour the roof just collapsed ."

No-one was injured in the blaze and the cause is now under investigation.